Secondary markets

Demands for loan quality aren't just coming from regulators and the government-sponsored enterprises. Secondary market partners and investors don't want to be left holding the bag if loans that lenders create have quality issues.

Fannie Mae's first-quarter profits were enough for it to rebuild its minimum capital buffer and pay the Treasury Department dividend after being forced to take a draw during the previous fiscal period.

If Freddie Mac's credit-risk transfer activities continue to grow, mortgage lenders could eventually see a reduction in the guarantee fees they pay to the government-sponsored enterprise, according to CEO Donald Layton.

The future secondary mortgage market entities will receive high investment grade ratings, even as there is no clarity on their scope or form, Fitch Ratings said.

A pair of the nation's largest banks, Citigroup and Wells Fargo, made changes to their mortgage banking executive teams.

There is an oncoming liquidity crisis that will force consolidation in the mortgage industry as margins tighten and funding sources dry up.

Credit unions favor housing finance reforms that would keep the government-sponsored enterprises or something similar in place, but add an explicit government guarantee to their mortgage-backed securities, according to a recent survey.

As inflation fears put upward pressure on 10-year Treasury bonds and mortgage rates nationally, borrowers could start to take more notice of what lenders are charging them locally.

Freddie Mac is now accepting bids on $420 million in nonperforming loans, its first NPL sale of 2018.

Freddie Mac posted a fourth-quarter net loss of $3.3 billion and will request $312 million from the Treasury after recent tax reform legislation forced it to write down the value of deferred tax assets.

Walter Investment Management Corp. plans to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy and start trading again under a new name in a matter of days.

Recent stock market volatility may further constrain jumbo lending, while inflation concerns have lenders paying close attention to rising mortgage rates.

Lenders need to be aware of a possible investor backlash as critical defects found in closed loans increased in frequency as the shift continued to a purchase market.

Loan defaults associated with the three late summer hurricanes could have a more immediate effect on MGIC Investment Corp.'s secondary market capital cushion than proposed changes by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Genworth Financial's acquisition by a Chinese insurance company, which has already been delayed several times, might be in peril following the failure of another cross-border merger to gain approval.

From origination to servicing and everything in between, here's a look at what's in store for the mortgage industry in 2018.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have new technology-driven initiatives planned for 2018 that are expected to help lenders improve the borrowing experience for home buyers and make full use of the government-sponsored enterprises' credit box.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's final Duty to Serve plans are moving ahead with expanded support for manufactured housing through both single-family and multifamily programs, including controversial personal property loans.

Royal Bank of Scotland Chief Executive Officer Ross McEwan said the likelihood is waning that the lender will settle a U.S. mortgage-bond probe before the end of the year as he'd hoped, though it's well-capitalized to handle a settlement.

The U.S. is taking steps to stamp out the practice of servicemembers and veterans being pressured into taking mortgages they don't need, a move that officials say will lower consumer costs and could lead to financial penalties for lenders.